# Of Martinis and condiments...



## Trumpet (Apr 6, 2006)

Alright fellers,
I love me a good martini. I've tried a LOT of different combos; from high end, to um....not so high end. When I was working in a cigar shop with a bar I served up a LOT of the high end martinis. You know, Grey Goose, Tanqueray X, etc. We also did some unofficial taste testing . We found that Grey Goose was very good, but over priced. Tanqueray X was laughably overpriced. However, since I'm no longer a Tobacconist/bartender and no longer able to take advantage of a lovely employee discount, I've been forced to find less expensive brands. One of the best ones (vodka) I've found recently is Svedka. It's VERY good and pretty cheap (<$20 for 1.75 liters).

For a Vodka martini, here's what I like...
-Start with a chilled glass
-Two shots Svedka
-One "mist" from atomizer of dry Vermouth. Sometimes I'll even try 1/2 a "spritz"
-shake in mixer with ice
-two or three Old South Tomolives.










The Tomolives are the crowning touch (for me) for a perfect Vodka Martini. They're little pickled tomatoes and are fantastic!

For a Gin martini, I've settled on Bombay Sapphire. This is one of the few spirits that I personally can justify paying the extra money for.

The routine is the same with the Gin martini as it is with the Vodka martini, with one more exception. The olive.

I've tried God knows how many different brands of olives. Now, when I want an olive in a martini, I don't want your run of the mill olive loaf or tuna salad olive, yet for so long that's all I could find. A couple weeks ago while grocery shopping, I came across a brand called Gaea (from Greece). As you could imagine, they had all sorts of Greek Kalamata olives, stuffed grape leaves, etc. They also had natural pimento stuffed green olives, so despite the $4.00 cost, I picked up a jar.










Lo and behold, my search is over! These olives are FANTASTIC!!!! They have a great "olivey" flavor without just tasting like a salty lump, wonderful texture, and the pimento has it's own independent taste!

Yes, quality hooch is important in any good cocktail, but it is vital in something as "pure" as the martini. However, a martini made from even the best booze can fizzle when the barkeep (or whoever is making the drinks) cheaps out on the condiment/garnish. In my experience the "condiment" added to the 'tini is all too often overlooked and can really make the difference between a "martini" and a martini that makes you don your smoking jacket, slap the wife on the ass, and proclaim HUZZAH!

So git yerself your favorite fire water, a jar of Old South Tomolives, a jar of Gaea stuffed olives and have at it.

That is all.

Rich


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## qwerty1500 (Feb 24, 2006)

Hmmmmm. Can't let a martini thread pass without a comment.

Think Tanqueray 10 is overpriced but Bombay Sapphire is worth the money? For me, Sapphire goes overboard with the almond flavor and the Tang 10 is just about perfect. Go figure ... kind of like cigars ... everyone has different tastes.

Now ... olives ... that's a different matter. I wouldn't eat an olive if you paid me but I wouldn't drink a martini without one. Olive lovers seem to follow me around waiting for me to finish my martini. I'll keep an eye open for Gaea olives ... my friends deserve the best.

Now, here is my question ... what cigar do you like best with your gin martini?


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## pnoon (Jun 8, 2005)

qwerty1500 said:


> Hmmmmm. Can't let a martini thread pass without a comment.
> 
> Think Tanqueray 10 is overpriced but Bombay Sapphire is worth the money? For me, Sapphire goes overboard with the almond flavor and the Tang 10 is just about perfect. Go figure ... kind of like cigars ... everyone has different tastes.
> 
> ...


I like Tanqueray 10 a lot but agree it is overpriced. Bombay Sapphire is my everyday gin for martinis. I also like Boomsma. Reasonably priced and quite tasty.

As for which cigar I like best with a martini? A lit one! 
Seriously, a while back some of us did a martini and cigar tasting and the consensus was that any cigar goes with a martini. As the martini consumption increases, the preference for cigars widens.


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## qwerty1500 (Feb 24, 2006)

pnoon said:


> As the martini consumption increases, the preference for cigars widens.


Yep ... :r

Boomsma?????


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## Lumpold (Apr 28, 2005)

http://www.boomsma.net/

Appears to be a dutch gin.... but I'm only guessing here


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## pnoon (Jun 8, 2005)

Lumpold said:


> http://www.boomsma.net/
> 
> Appears to be a dutch gin.... but I'm only guessing here


Your guess is correct, sir. The young (Jonge) and old (Oude) are both good.
Retails for around $15 US for a 750 ml bottle.


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## Trumpet (Apr 6, 2006)

Hmmmmm...

Have to check out Boosma


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## TU09 (Mar 26, 2006)

I love svedka! Best vodka short of Grey Goose in my opinnion and very reasonably priced. I am astonished it doesn't get more credit than it does. Great straight and mixes well, unbeatable for the price. Did you notice a price hike this summer or is my store just squezzing a little more out of me?

I agree with the sapphire as well. It beats tanqueray easily by my tastes although they each have their strong points. We seem to have very similar preferences.

:al :al


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## qwerty1500 (Feb 24, 2006)

pnoon said:


> Your guess is correct, sir. The young (Jonge) and old (Oude) are both good.
> Retails for around $15 US for a 750 ml bottle.


Have never seen these but I will be keep an eye out for them. You know I gotta try them.......


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## galaga (Sep 18, 2003)

qwerty1500 said:


> Have never seen these but I will be keep an eye out for them. You know I gotta try them.......


So many ________*, so little time!

a) condiments
b) gins
c) vodkas
e) all of the above


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## KASR (Aug 2, 2006)

Love svedka! It keeps my Kettle One company.

KASR


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## oddball (Feb 14, 2006)

Gin martini for me, please.
Bombay Sapphire and Noilly Prat dry vermouth, medium dry mixed with a 5:1 ratio.
Two olives or a pearl onion (which makes it a Gibson).
Martinis are like breasts; one is not enough and three is too many...


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## trogdor (Aug 14, 2006)

I like Chopin vodka martinis with blue cheese stuffed olives. You need to drink a good bit of vodka after chomping on one before you take a puff of a cigar, though.
Also, I was very excited recently to find blue cheese stuffed olives in the grocery store (Beefeater brand), and paid an exorbitant amount for a small jar of them. You shouldn't - they were awful.


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## gabebdog1 (Mar 9, 2005)

qwerty1500 said:


> Have never seen these but I will be keep an eye out for them. You know I gotta try them.......


thats cuz pnoon got it at the corner liqour store where they also sell : cobra,steal,colt 45,magnum,and boons


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## Tahoeseno (Feb 6, 2005)

Oh, my favorite topic -- Vitamin "V" and the ritual.

My martini must be served shaken and served up
in an ice-cold glass still frosty from the freezer. 
Just a drop or so of a good quality vermouth (e.g., 
Vya) is all I need. If I am going high-end hooch, I 
particularly like Level. Otherwise, I love Svedka for
both taste and value.

Garnish? I too am a blue cheese olive kind of guy. 
I tend to eschew the bottled olives in favor of 
jalepeno stuffed olives from the olive bar at my 
local market. Then, I perform surgery on two at
a time, extracting the jalapeno and stuffing the 
cavity with some buttery Great Hill blue cheese.
Sometimes, for variety I will marinate my own olives
or stuff olives with chopped anchovy and have them 
with my martini.

As an appetizer with this masterpiece, I love a small
dish of sesame sticks (regular and cheddar). These
crunchy tasties provide a perfect backdrop to the
cocktail/garnish.

Mmmmmm. That leads me to the next step . . . a
steak and a stick (a topic for future discussions).


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## Ivory Tower (Nov 18, 2005)

oddball said:


> Gin martini for me, please.
> Bombay Sapphire and Noilly Prat dry vermouth, medium dry mixed with a 5:1 ratio.
> Two olives or a pearl onion (which makes it a Gibson).
> Martinis are like breasts; one is not enough and three is too many...


That sounds about right.


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## cigar no baka (Sep 7, 2005)

For me, it's always Titos hand made vodka, made right here in the great state of Texas!!

And I get my imported garlic-stuffed olives and I'm good to go, wheeee!!!


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## Lewshus (Jun 30, 2006)

Oh man, you guys are making me thirsty.

As for Vodka I prefer Ciroc, its distilled from grapes and has a wonderful flavor. For gin its either tanquerey or Bombay Sapphire. I never buy cheap alcohol. It along with cigars is the only thing I splurge on.

I too have fallen in love with blue cheese olives. For my martini I start with an ice cold glass, add about a teaspoon of vermouth, swirl it around the glass and pour it out. Sometimes I dirty it with olive juice, but I have to be in the mood.

Next comes a dry aged bone-in ribeye with a blue cheese compound butter.

:dr


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